The atmosphere in the tattoo shop is undeniably friendly as the man covered in tattoos starts the tattoo gun.  The buzzing from the vibrating needle slowly presses against the skin, creating a custom design of swirls and colors.

Whether a form of expression, a way of mourning, or a simple avocation, students and teachers have tattoos.

California law states that no one under the age of 18 can get a tattoo, even with parental consent. Despite this, students have still been able to get the tattoos they wanted.

“When I was growing up, all the people I looked up to had tattoos and it just seemed natural that at some point in my life I would have them, too,” senior Smith Levi said.

Levi said that getting a tattoo became a reality at the end of his sophomore year when his family got matching tattoos November of 2012.

They all got an Andy Warohol poppy print with the same outline, but the inside is unique, Levi said.

English teacher Mercedes Foster has a tattoo above her navel.

 “I was eighteen and had wanted a tattoo for a while, but I was broke and there were very few tattoo places that I felt comfortable patronizing,” Foster said.

One day at a friend’s friend’s house, Foster created a design in ten minutes for a guy there who had a tattoo gun.

“It was a pretty goofy decision on my part. I asked for the work to be on my foot, but the tattoo guy told me that the tattoo on my foot would blur very quickly, so I decided right then and there to put it above my navel instead,” Foster said.

Levi said that he also has “stick n poke” tattoos, which are homemade tattoos usually done with sewing needles and ink.

“None of them have extravagant meanings, but they all serve as my own little reminders about how stupid I like to be,” Levi said.

Levi said that for some reason everyone thinks that a tattoo has to have a really deep meaning, and has gotten scolded by people for what he has to say about his.

Foster agrees that tattoos do not need to be profound,“Some people just like to be decorated.”

Despite this, Foster said that one should always think about what one wants for a long time.

“Order your design exactly the size you want it to be as a temporary tattoo.  (You can buy sheets of custom temporary tattoos from online printing sites like stickeryou.com for under $20.) ,” Foster said.

Foster suggests that one should wear the sticker every day for three full months until it starts to fade or peel.

“If you do this faithfully, you will get a good idea about how you will feel looking at the thing every day, plus some idea of how other people will react,” Foster said.

Foster said that she actually appreciates beautiful work, but knows multiple people with terrible tattoos that none of them thought that they would end up regretting them.

“It’s important to me that my students understand the ramifications of permanent body modifications,” Foster said, “I have no problems with mine, but had I chosen to have that guy tattoo on my arm or neck or something, I know I would really, really regret it by now.”